2 teens held in Wyoming triple homicide

Associated Press

Updated 11:08 pm, Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Photo: James Woodcock, Associated Press

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Stephen Hammer, a suspect in a triple homicide in Clark, Wyo., is escorted into the Park County Courthouse in Cody for his arraignment Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Hammer, 19, and Tanner Vanpelt, 18, are charged with 11 felony counts, including premeditated murder, use of a deadly weapon and robbery. Some of the charges could carry the death penalty. Hammer and Vanpelt were arrested after neighbors described two men entering a house Saturday where the victim's bodies were found. The neighbors saw two vehicles speeding away, including a black Audi belonging to Ildiko Freitas, 40, who owned the house with her husband. Freitas and her parents, Janos Volgyesi, 69, and Hildegard Volgyesi, 70, were found dead inside the house. (AP Photo/Billings Gazette, James Woodcock) less

Stephen Hammer, a suspect in a triple homicide in Clark, Wyo., is escorted into the Park County Courthouse in Cody for his arraignment Tuesday, March 5, 2013. Hammer, 19, and Tanner Vanpelt, 18, are charged ... more

Photo: James Woodcock, Associated Press

2 teens held in Wyoming triple homicide

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Cody, Wyo. -- Two teens charged in a triple homicide in a small Wyoming town told investigators they stole a pair of handguns from a gun store and planned to flee by stealing a sport utility vehicle, leading to the slayings of its owner and her elderly parents.

Stephen Hammer, 19, and Tanner Vanpelt, 18, both of Cody, made their first court appearance Tuesday in a case that has rattled residents of the small town of Clark near the Wyoming-Montana border.

Each is charged with 11 felony counts, including premeditated murder, use of a deadly weapon, conspiracy and murder in the course of a robbery. Some of the charges could carry the death penalty.

Circuit Court Judge Bruce Waters ordered them held without bond, at the urging of prosecutors who noted the severity of the charges.

Guns are generally accepted as part of everyday life in this part of northwest Wyoming, where hunting is a popular pastime. A museum dedicated to firearms is located a few blocks from the courthouse where Hammer and Vanpelt stood before the judge.

Yet murders are rare, and the fatal shootings in Clark stood out both for their brutal nature and the young age of the defendants.

Hammer and Vanpelt were arrested after neighbors described two men entering the house Saturday where the victim's bodies were found.

The neighbors saw two vehicles speeding away, including an Audi SUV belonging to Ildiko Freitas, 40, who owned the house with her husband. Freitas and her parents, Janos Volgyesi, 69, and Hildegard Volgyesi, 70, were found dead inside the house.

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